Bolton Wanderers are looking to keep the pressure on Stevenage at the top of League One as they travel to face Reading this weekend.
Reading currently sit 21st in League One with two wins and four losses from their first four games of the season.
Having entered the season with a four point deduction the odds were stacked against The Royals in terms of nailing down a good start to the campaign and things have been further compounded by an additional three points deduction, issued on Wednesday, for the club's failure to deposit funds into a designated account by a Tuesday deadline.
Things are, then, going from bad to worse for a club that has had little to smile about in the past few years and they're coming into this game out of sorts once again having lost each of their last three matches.
A league cup defeat on penalties following a 2-2 draw with Ipswich Town came in the middle of league defeats at the hands of Exeter City, 2-1, and most recently Cambridge United, 1-0, in what has been a tough run of games.
The loss at Cambridge was a tough one for Reading given they were facing a good side that many expect to challenge for the play-offs this season and they kept the scores at 0-0 until the 83rd minute when Fejiri Okenabirhie hit the winner for the home side in what was a closely contested fixture.
Reading can't seem to buy any luck at present and that doesn't look like it's going to change as they're faced with the most unkind of fixtures at the worst possible time here as they prepare to take on one of the automatic promotion favourites.
Bolton Wanderers currently sit 2nd in League One with four wins, one draws and one loss from their first six games of the season.
It's been a strong start to the campaign overall for a Trotters side that most had penned in as title favourites coming into the campaign.
They do enter this game amidst a mixed run of form, however, having won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five games in all competitions.
Bolton had started the season like a house on fire but were abruptly and unexpectedly put to the sword by their local rivals in a 0-4 stuffing that saw them embark upon a three-match winless run in all competitions.
However, they appear to be now putting that period behind them as they come into this game off the back of consecutive wins at home to Derby County in the league, 2-1, and at home to Salford City in the EFL Trophy, 3-0.
The win over Derby was a closely contested encounter and they were helped massively as the away side were reduced to ten men but that may have been the stoke of luck they needed to get back on track in a difficult time.
They're coming into this one in good shape and given they're facing a side woefully out of form they should fancy themselves to register a third straight win.
For our Reading vs. Bolton prediction, we're going for a 2-1 win for the away side.
Don’t forget to check out the rest of our previews, tips and offers for this weekend’s action.
